A hand gently stroked Arthur’s brow. His eyes opened … reluctantly … to a dim, blurry view … as if he were seeing the room and the figure before him through a glass bottle. His distorted vision wasn’t nearly as bad as the pounding in his head, the aching in his body, and the ringing in his ears.

“Be healed, Arthur Primus,” said the figure. Her voice seemed to be a distant whisper. Then she chanted words that were either in a foreign language or just too faint for his damaged eardrums to decipher.

Warmth spread through him; his vision cleared; the ringing in his ears stopped; the pain throughout his body faded — except in his chest and on his arm, where the shade had grabbed him.

Alluring, bronze-skinned Ylliara knelt before him, with a tender, almost sad, smile creasing her face. This time she wasn’t a flickering hologram; she was here, in person. And she was even more astonishingly beautiful. No one in the world could be more beautiful than her. 

Her voice was now loud and clear as she asked, “Is that better, Master Paladin?”

“A lot. Thanks.”

“Master Paladin, please accept my apology. I did not intend to arrive here so violently. However, moving between universes is difficult and requires a lot of power and practice, and unfortunately, this was my first attempt.”

Arthur nodded dumbly, only half understanding what she was saying. Then he came to his senses. “Hey, where’s Morgan? Is she —”

“I’m right here, moron.”

Looking shell-shocked, Morgan was sitting with her back against the wall, with her head tucked between her knees and her hands locked together on the back of her neck. Arthur pushed himself up and sat beside her. “You okay?”

“I can barely hear you, I can’t see a blasted thing, and I feel like I’ve tumbled down that hill a few more times.”

“Allow me, young lady,” said Lady Ylliara. 

She took Morgan’s hands and chanted in a strange language. A warm glow flowed from Ylliara’s fingertips. Morgan took a deep breath and relaxed — then she yanked her hands back and glanced down at them as if they were dirty.

The angelic being smiled at Morgan. “I am Lady Ylliara of the Aetheria.”

“I’m Arthur’s friend Morgan Apple … actually, I think I’m his only friend.”

Arthur shook his head. If that were true, he still didn’t have any friends — he just had a Morgan. 

“Morgan’s here by accident. The shades were chasing me and I ran into her … literally, like I knocked her down a hill. We took shelter in the house.”

Morgan gestured at his arm. “You’re still hurt.” 

The puckering blister from the shade and the shard of plastic poking out his chest were the only sources of pain left. The little cuts from the glass window and the bruises from rolling down the hill barely registered; it was like he’d spent a week or so resting and recovering.

“I shall tend to your other wounds now, Master Paladin. The first application of healing could only repair your lesser injuries.” 

“Just Arthur, please,” he said.

“As you wish.” She touched the wound on his arm and chanted. When she drew her hand away, the burn looked no worse than what he might have gotten from touching a hot pan on the stove. It was far from pleasant, but it was a hundred times better than it had been. She reached toward his chest. “I fear this will hurt. There is nothing I can do about that.”

“Maybe … maybe we can leave it in there?” he offered.

“Now that it no longer hides you from us, the device serves no purpose. Besides, it is cracked and still jabbing into your flesh. The wound will eventually become infected.”

“So you’re — you’re going to rip it out?”

Ylliara nodded gravely. “You may wish to look away. I will be as quick as possible. Take off your shirt, please.”

Arthur set his shirt aside, and Ylliara placed both palms against his chest. Relaxing warmth flowed into him. This wasn’t bad … he could handle it — the warmth surged to a searing heat — he felt a tugging sensation as the plate began to pull away from his rib cage. He turned his head. With wide eyes, Morgan watched, but not in a horrified way — she seemed fascinated. She really was one seriously weird girl.

With a rip, his skin tore — blood splattered Ylliara — the plate clattered onto the floor. Pain lanced through his chest; he tried to scream — failed — and swooned. Continuing to chant, Ylliara caught him. The blood on her disappeared, and the pain diminished, but he still passed out …

He woke to see Morgan studying the plastic disk on the floor. She reached toward it, but Ylliara shook her head. 

“I would not touch it.”

Arthur looked down and felt his chest. The skin had been sewn back into place, and the wound was scarred over, as if several days had passed.

“How … how long was I out?” Arthur said groggily. His wounds might be healed, but he still felt battered and exhausted.

“Only a few minutes,” Morgan replied. “Lady Ylliara just finished telling me about your encounter in the woods and you being the Multiversal Paladin … whatever that means.”

“Again, I am sorry for the nature of my arrival,” said Ylliara. “Moving between universes is no easy matter, and truthfully, I never thought I would have to.”

“What universe did you come from?” Morgan asked.

“The Aetherial Universe,” Ylliara replied without further explanation.

Arthur pulled his shirt back on. His muscles were stiff, but at least he didn’t feel like he was going to die anymore.

“Did you come here to help us?” he asked.

“I came here to restore the Manse,” said Lady Ylliara. “When you entered and the Manse shifted away from Earth, the last of my mother’s life-force faded away.”

“Wait — your mother was here?” Arthur asked. “When we arrived? I didn’t see anyone.”

Morgan shook her head. “I didn’t either.”

Ylliara’s shoulders sagged. “My mother’s essence is what powered the Manse for more than two millennia. And now that she has gone, the Manse will diminish. Within an hour, all the lights will go out, in a couple of days the Manse will begin to break apart, and in a few weeks it will be naught but dust floating in the aether between the universes, a forgotten hope of better days.”

“I’m … I’m sorry about your mother,” Arthur said.

“So am I,” Ylliara replied.

“What happened?” Morgan asked.

“Truthfully, I do not know. About ten years ago, Arthur suddenly disappeared, and his father Quintus refused to explain why. Our most powerful psychics scanned the Multiverse for Arthur, but failed to find him. Not long after that, we lost contact with Quintus Paladin as well, and, even more disturbing, we lost contact with the Manse itself. My mother, with all her power, could no longer communicate with us — nor could I find her. We assumed that Quintus, Arthur, and even the Manse itself were gone … until today, when the device over Arthur’s heart was broken, sending a clarion call to Aetheria. I contacted him immediately, and arrived here as soon as I could.”

“So it was like a cloaking device?” Morgan asked.

Ylliara nodded. “It hid Arthur from Aetheria and Entropy. Neither my people nor the shadows could find him. I assume this was his father’s way of keeping him safe. I have no idea why the device was placed on Arthur. I have never heard of such technology before in my life, but I can guess at who made it.”

They looked at her expectantly, but she didn’t say anything further about the device.

“So, I’m not safe anymore, am I?” Arthur asked.

“No, you are not. The Manse is filled with shadows.”

Ylliara walked over to the doorway below the loft and traced her hand over the glowing, three-armed symbol. The triskelion, which had started to fade, began to glow brightly again. “You fought against a few shades summoned through a crystal. They are nothing compared to the wraiths and the warlock I sense deep within. Something allowed these dark forces in the house. Whatever it was, my mother tried to prevent them from taking over — hence the glowing sigil you see hovering in the doorway.”

Ylliara turned and gazed at Arthur with a look he hated, for he knew it well. It was the same look Dr. Dickinson gave him before punishing him: the I’m-sorry-I’ve-got-to-do-this-to-you look.

“With my mother gone, there may be no way to know for certain what happened,” said Ylliara. “It is possible that the computer systems in the Manse retain the information … but I doubt it. Someone, Quintus I presume, went to a lot of trouble to hide what was happening here, just as he went to a lot of trouble to hide Arthur from both Aetheria and Entropy. It was good fortune that the device broke, and I could find you. There is hope again, little as it may be. The Manse would have disintegrated within a year, even if it had remained stationary, for the shadows within are eating away at the life force of the Manse.”

“So my father is dead …”

“That is why you were called, Arthur. To take your father’s place. There can only be one Multiversal Paladin. That is the way of things.”

Arthur choked back a sob. He’d always known his father had to be dead. Why else would he never come back for him? But that didn’t make it any easier to hear. “When … when did he die?”

Ylliara shrugged. “I would guess when we lost contact, but we cannot know for certain unless he left a message behind for us. Your father was behaving in a strange manner when last Aetheria communicated with him. Mother assured us everything was okay. Clearly, she was wrong.”

“Or she lied,” Morgan stated.

Arthur was worried Ylliara would be offended by Morgan’s statement, but she merely shrugged and said, “Possibly. But if she did, I am certain she did it for good reason.”

“So what happens now?” Arthur asked.

“Obviously, Ylliara will give up her life to power the house again,” Morgan said, “just as her mother did.”

“Miss Apple is correct,” Ylliara said. “Only the soul of an Aetherian can power the Manse. That duty has fallen to me. It is my terrible honor.”

“Why not take us home and return to your world instead?” Arthur said.

“Would you truly rather return home than serve the light and battle evil throughout the Multiverse?”

“No, but I don’t want you to die, either.”

“For me, this is not a true death; my spirit will live on. The cause could not be any nobler. And besides, as your skill increases, you will be able to commune with me in the Inner Sanctum.”

“You know I’m just a kid, without any useful evil-fighting skills … right? I don’t even have a clue what a Multiversal Paladin is.”

“Of course, of course … normally, you would have been taught all of this from the time you were born.”

If a light bulb could go off over someone’s head, Arthur would’ve had a giant, 1,000-watt floodlight hanging over him at the moment. “Oh! I bet my dad did tell me about all the Paladin stuff. I bet he was telling me about all the things I’d be doing and learning as I grew up. But then he left me, and I was too little to actually remember the details. That’s why I’ve always had this feeling in school, like I’m supposed to be learning something bigger and more important, like I’m supposed to be learning how to save the world. And I’ve always dreamed about spaceships and strange alien creatures, too.” 

Ylliara nodded. “And by now you would be far along in learning to be the Paladin. You would be actively training for battle, alongside your cousins and siblings, if you had any. But alas, there is only you. No one else can do this.”

“Wait, all the members of my father’s family are gone? I’m the only one left?”

“All of them were assassinated, one by one, over the span of a decade. Then your mother was assassinated, shortly before we lost contact with your father.”

“My mother was assassinated?! She didn’t die in a rock-climbing accident?!”

“No, of course not. I thought you knew …”

Arthur’s heart ached; a lump formed in his throat. “I … I really don’t know anything. Who killed her?”

“We never found out. I assume your father was working on that when we lost contact with him.”

“So they … they must’ve gotten him too, then?”

“Perhaps.”

Morgan leaned forward, chewing at her lip. “You said there was a powerful shadow man in the Manse …”

“A warlock. Under his command are powerful wraiths and, if I’m sensing correctly, hundreds of shades like the ones you encountered — summoned from more crystals, like the one you destroyed.”

“So they must be the ones who killed my mom and dad?”

“I doubt a warlock and a group of wraiths could kill your father, especially in the Manse. Under normal circumstances, with the Manse fully powered, there is no way a wraith could even cross the threshold and enter.”

Suddenly, the lights dimmed noticeably, and the flames in one fireplace died out. Ylliara shot a nervous look toward the door leading deeper into the Manse and said, “We have little time left. I must tell you everything you absolutely must know, as simply and quickly as possible. I am sorry, but you will have to learn the rest on your own.”

“You mean we have to fight the wraiths and shades inside by ourselves?!” Arthur exclaimed.

“Obviously,” Morgan sighed.

Ylliara nodded, and so Arthur turned to Morgan. “You should leave. This isn’t your fight, and I don’t want you to get hurt, or … or worse.”

Morgan stared at him intently. “Friends stick together in hard times, right?”

“Well, yeah … I guess so.”

“Then I will stick with you.”

“But that’s crazy. You could walk out that door and return —”

“To a normal life?” She chuckled. “Yeah … I don’t have one. Besides, if I die … I die. Big deal. It happens. Besides, opportunities like this just don’t come around … well, ones like this aren’t supposed to ever come around.”

“I am glad that you feel that way,” Ylliara said. “I think you will make an excellent official companion to the Multiversal Paladin. I am doubly glad, because there is no way for you to return home right now. The Manse has shifted into the Song Between the Verses. If you walked out of the Door To Many Worlds right now, while the Signal is red, you would step out into nothingness.”

“What signal?” Arthur asked. “What door?”

Lady Ylliara gestured toward the door through which they’d entered the Manse.

Two old-fashioned light bulbs protected by wire cages — the sort of lights you’d see on a ship or in an old bunker — were fixed above the door. One light was red; the other green. The red one was glowing; it was noticeable but not very bright.

“So if the light is green,” Morgan said, “and we open the door …”

“You will step out into a new world, but not just any world. You will be in the one place in the universe where the Multiversal Paladin is most needed. Finding that place and getting you there safely will be my job.”

“So you could guide us back home,” said Morgan, “if we wanted to return?”

“I could … under normal circumstances. But there will be no return to your home — no going anywhere — until the Manse is restored, and all the Entropian forces within are eradicated.”

“Well, that’s not going to happen, because we don’t have any way to kill them.” Arthur said. “All I’ve got is a blue belt in karate.” He pointed to the sword that he’d dropped when Ylliara’s explosive arrival blew him across the room. “And that didn’t do me much good.”

“That is but a ceremonial blade,” Ylliara replied. “There are powerful weapons capable of destroying wraiths — you will find them in the Armory. As for your skills … there is nothing we can do about that.” 

The flames in the other fireplace fluttered and went out. Ylliara took a deep breath and spoke fast. “Listen carefully, and please, do not interrupt. We have no time left for questions. Arthur, we call you the Multiversal Paladin because you carry within you the royal bloodlines of the Aetherian Universe and the Entropian Universe, as well as some of the best genetics humanity has to offer. Your universe is called the Prime Universe. You may find it easier to think of the other two as higher planes of existence.

“I am, of course, from Aetheria. And the shades you fought are from Entropia. Where we represent light, order, and creation, the Entropians represent darkness, chaos, and destruction. The history of our war is long and complex. Suffice it to say that we have battled one another for eons. We have fought directly, and we have fought through our agents in your universe. 

“The Paladin family has long represented Aetheria, and while all of them are above and beyond normal humans in their abilities and training, a single member of the family, the one most qualified, male or female, takes on the mantle of the Multiversal Paladin. This mantle brings with it raw power and supernatural abilities that you, unfortunately, have not had the chance to prepare for, so be wary: Power is not always a good thing. If you are not careful, it can overwhelm you. 

“Using this power, the Multiversal Paladin travels the universe, from planet to planet, helping those in desperate need and fighting against the forces of Entropy — sometimes directly and sometimes indirectly. Of course, one Paladin cannot defeat the enemy alone. The universe is almost unimaginably massive. No, the Aetheria merely sends the Paladin to where he or she is most needed, and the Paladin serves as a beacon of light and hope. Hope, you see, spreads like a ripple in a pond — that is how we counter Entropy’s forces, which are stronger and far greater in number.”

“You don’t have any other agents?” Morgan asked, defying Ylliara’s request that they ask no questions.

Ylliara shook her head. “Once we did, but all have now perished. For the first time since the Manse was created and the first Paladin anointed, the Entropians are attacking our universe directly. We will not be able to hold them off much longer. A hundred years at best; a decade at the worst. With the Manse restored and you, Arthur, successful, we may be able to fend them off permanently, or at least extend our survival.”

“So let me get this straight,” Arthur said. “Aetheria is about to fall, and I’m the last hero you’ve got to represent you in this universe. I’m especially powerful, but I don’t know how to control the powers you don’t have time to tell me about. And all of my family is dead.”

“That is correct. But you do have one companion now.” Ylliara smiled at Morgan. “All your father had in the end was your mother, and she spent most of her time raising you. Traditionally, every Multiversal Paladin traveled with twelve companions. Frequently, these were siblings and cousins, uncles and aunts, who might take on the Mantle should the Paladin fall and who had the training to combat the forces of darkness. Though that wasn’t always the case: There are brave individuals of unique skill throughout the Prime Universe. “

“Okay, so what do I do now?” Arthur asked.

“Rest for a few hours, then go through those doors and into the Grand Hallway. Fight the wraiths and shades within and free the Manse. Otherwise, the three of us will die.”

“Great, we’re doomed,” Arthur muttered.

“Off the Grand Hallway you will find the Armory. It is the third door to your right. Go there first and arm yourselves. Hopefully Bright-Cage, the Sword of the Multiversal Paladin, is still here somewhere. It is the most powerful weapon we have, other than the Paladin himself.

“The shades you fought in here were summoned from a dark-heart. I feel confident that all the shades in the Manse came from dark-hearts. That will make things somewhat easier for you. But the wraiths and the warlock do not have such a weakness. I also fear that my arrival has further alerted the Entropians to your presence. As the stone in here was once dormant, then awoke when you entered, I am certain that all of the stones have now come alive.”

“Are you sure you can’t help us fight them?” Arthur asked.

Ylliara shook her head as a lantern winked out. “There is no time. And the Law of Aetheria forbids me to take direct action in the Prime Universe.”

“You can’t break that law?” Morgan asked. “Because this is looking pretty bleak.”

“I would break the law if I could, but I cannot,” Ylliara said, sadly. “I will be able to help you in other ways, though. You saw me strengthen the glowing triskelion sigil that has the enemy locked out of this room. If my senses are correct, my mother had a chance to place them across many doorways throughout the Manse. The sigils are fading now, but once I restore the Manse, that should rejuvenate them. Your enemies cannot cross that barrier unless … well, you should be safe. You and Morgan, however, can walk through the sigils without difficulty.”

She took a deep breath. “Now, there is one other quite significant thing I can do to help you out — a way in which my particular power can aid you immensely. I shall numenate you.”

“You’ll what?” Arthur said.

“I don’t have time to explain,” she said, as another lantern flickered out. The room was almost as dark now as when they had first entered. “What I’m about to do will knock you unconscious for a short while. You will be safe, however. And when you wake, do not be alarmed at what you see. No harm shall come to you. I will be gone by then, my essence bound to the Manse, but I will be here with you in spirit. Farewell, Morgan Apple. Farewell, Master Paladin. I wish you good fortune. On you much depends.” 

Ylliara reached out and touched her forefinger to the middle of Morgan’s forehead. Morgan collapsed, unconscious. Before Arthur could react, Ylliara did the same to him. As he fell unconscious, he heard the howl of a wolf and the growling of a big cat.